Written by Petrit Latifi

This article quotes a Montenegrin book from the 1890s. The text deals with the clothing and folk tradition of the Kuçi tribe. In the 1890s, they wore Albanian Çakshirë, Zhgun (wool) and the a white Plis on their heads. The women wore different folk clothing in the form of a xhublete perhaps. The author even says that they paid for wearing the plis with their lives, so much so that when they went to war they were distinguished from the Montenegrins because they did not wear one on their heads because they could be killed by the Montenegrins themselves.

Text in translation:

“The largest villages of Kuçi Drekalović: Medun (around the town of the same name), Ubli, Kosori, etc. each have up to 200 houses, all other small villages are from 30-40 houses each and are scattered over a large area and lie mainly between broken hills in small fields, which resemble lamins, surrounded by high cliffs.

The clothing of the Kuçi differs in everything from the general Montenegrin costume. The Kuçi wear a narrow çakshire made of white cloth, a zhgun made of white cloth with thin fringes with black cords and on their heads a white cloth hat (plis) or a sewn hat, as the Arbanasi usually wear, and because of that hat, many Kuçi paid with their heads, who shot the Montenegrins, remembering that they were Turkish enemies.

Now you will understand why Marash threw his white hat over Bioče and fled barefoot to the army of Vojvoda Marku (Milan). With this, you will now see many Kuči going into battle barefoot, because they do not have Montenegrin hats and while he does not dare to wear a white one on his head, lest he be killed by his Montenegrin brother. Also, the dress of Kuči women is very different from the general dress of Montenegrin women.

A Montenegrin woman turns white like a swan with the “white dress”, while Kuči women wear knitted dresses of wool in different colors, which differ from the white dresses in their cut and are much stronger and heavier than these.”

Kuçi tribesmen in Cetine, 1901.

Kuçi tribe, 1900.

Kuçi men, 1890.

Source

UNIV. LIBRARIES V.M. No. 1158. FROM CRNA GORA AND HERZEGOVINA. MEMORIES WARS FOR NATIONAL LIBERATION 1876. 2 (WITH THIRTY-TWO PICTURES) WRITTEN By A. Pajevic. U NOVI SAD edition and printing by A. Pajević 1891. Library of JOCA VUJIĆ in Senta. p.378